Irony
by whump-2-go
Summary: Well, sometimes life can be kind, sometimes it can be cruel. Read to find out what this story is about. - A new story by Cokie316 and Sym64.
1. Chapter 1

**So, we're back. :-)**

 **Well, sometimes life can be kind, sometimes it can be cruel. Read to find out what this story is about.**

* * *

 **IRONY –** _ **Teaser  
** by Cokie and Sam_

Steve looked down at the woman he loved; has loved for as long as he could remember. Two days ago she had come back, came back to him. It hadn't been an easy talk, but in the end he had realized that no matter what had happened, why she had left him, he still loved her the same. Was still _in_ love with her. Realizing that had brought forgiveness. Forgiveness for hurting him so badly, for the time of misery they had spent apart.

After the talk they had spent almost every minute of the last two days together; it had been the weekend and no case had interrupted their time. Steve had even turned off his phone. They had not only rekindled their love, but they had found a new appreciation for what they had. And vowed never to take the other for granted ever again.

He had never been this happy as the last two days, and he was sure Catherine felt the same way. When Monday morning came, they both decided she would go to work with Steve to tell the others that she was back. For good this time. They hadn't bothered to call anyone and tell them the news. Not even Danny had been informed.

But the gods had other plans for the happy couple. They stood in front of HQ, Catherine facing Steve when a shot rang out and Catherine stumbled. She looked wide-eyed at Steve before they both went down.

Steve to his knees, with Catherine held in his arms. "No, no, no," he mumbled as he felt for a pulse. Not finding one, his anguish cry turned into a sob.

He held her tight and heeded no attention to the activity around him. He knew that officers were running around, looking for the shooter. He thought he had heard Danny and Chin at some point, and knew that Kono and Grover were nearby. No doubt protecting them in case the shooter would try again.

Not that it would be necessary to shoot again, the woman in his arms was already dead.

Steve slowly shifted his weight, so that he was now sitting on the ground, still with Catherine held tightly in his arms. There was a lot of blood covering her, seeping into his pants and his shirt. Mixing with his own blood that was slowly seeping out of the bullet wound in his abdomen. A wound that was concealed by Catherine's body.

But he felt no pain from the bullet that first went through Cath and then travelled through him to be stopped somewhere mid-body. The pain was in his heart; and for the very first time in his life he didn't care if he lived or died. So he sat there, letting the blood seep out of him.

Steve felt light-headed and recognized the onset of shock due to blood loss. But knowing that he was not going to make it gave him an odd sense of peace.

He had no idea how long he sat there, holding the love of his life in his arms, and slowly but surely bleeding to death. Steve felt a hand on his shoulder, shaking him, and a voice demanding him to look up. It was spoken with urgency, but softly.

Steve finally looked up, and tried to form words, but nothing came out. His vision grayed and he would have swayed to the side, if it hadn't been for Danny who was now kneeling in front of him, grabbing both his shoulders.

"Steve! You have to let go of her, so the paramedics can help her."

"No."

"Come on, Buddy. Let her go."

Steve fought the hands trying to get him to let go of Catherine, but he was weak and for the first time the pain hit him full force. He groaned and clutched his midsection with his one free hand. The other still holding tightly on to Catherine.

"Steve? Oh God, you're hit."

He felt himself being lowered to the ground, and then an incredible pain erupted when someone pressed on his stomach to slow the bleeding.

Steve groaned and turned his head to the side, catching a glimpse of the paramedics working on Cath. _Why did they place an oxygen mask on her?_ Steve wondered. _She was dead. What were they doing?_

"Steve! Don't you dare die on us!" He heard Danny yelling at him. For a second he thought, why not, she's dead. But then he heard it. "Got a pulse."

 _What?_ His mind screamed. _No, she was dead. Shot in the back. Kill shot._ Steve coughed when another wave of pain hit him. Blood spew up and hit him in the face on its way back down. His world exploded in red hot agony when he was lifted onto a gurney. The cry of pain died on his lips, his limbs went slack and his head lolled to the side.

H50 – H50 – H50

TBC during the week… if you want us to. ;-)


	2. Chapter 2

Here is chapter 2 which we hope you will enjoy.

Thank you so much for the fantastic reviews you have sent. We really do appreciate each and every one of you who take time to make a comment.

Mahalo, Cokie and Sam

* * *

 _ **IRONY - Chapter 2  
**_ _by Sam and Cokie_

 _Steve concentrated on his jog along the peaceful stretch of beach. He looked up to see how far he had come and saw her sitting on the beach facing the ocean, the sun shining on her face._

 _Steve slowed to a walk and continued toward her, smiling at her serene look._

" _Hey, Sailor," she said with a smile. "Been waiting for you."_

 _He plopped down next to her, leaning over for a kiss. "Hope it hasn't been too long," he told her. "I got here as quickly as I could."_

" _You're good," she said and slid her arm around his back. "I'm just admiring the view." She turned and looked out toward the sparkling water._

 _Steve didn't take his eyes off of her. "Me, too," he commented, loving to watch her. "So… do we need to talk?"_

" _About?" she asked, turning to meet his eyes._

" _Like what happened?"_

 _Cath shrugged. "Does it matter? I mean… I guess it isn't important anymore."_

 _He thought for a moment and then slowly shook his head. "No, I guess not. In that case, where do we go from here?"_

" _That, my dear Commander, I don't know." She stood up and reached out her hands for him. When he stood their arms immediately went around the other and she leaned her head on his shoulder. "But want to know what I_ _ **do**_ _know?"_

 _He grinned again. "I'm sure you will tell me regardless."_

 _She poked her elbow into his side. "Don't be a smartass."_

 _He pulled her close as they turned to walk down the beach. "So what do you know?"_

" _That wherever this leads, we are together," she replied, glancing up to look at his face._

" _Forever," he added. "This time it's forever."_

H50 – H50 – H50

Blood. It was everywhere. Danny had seen many scenes where a violent crime had been committed. He had seen his fair share of violence, gore and blood.

But this was different. This was his friend. _**Friends**_ , make that plural. _Where the heck had Catherine come from?_ As far as she wanted people to believe, she was in Nepal, or as they had learned, in Kiev, or wherever.

And now suddenly she was here; dying right in front of their own headquarters. Along with her lover, his best friend. NO. That was not gonna happen. Danny mentally shook himself, concentrated on what was going on right in front of him.

Danny watched the paramedics working on Steve. Inserting IV lines, and injecting various drugs into the freshly placed ports. One of the medics squeezed one of the clear bags to make the liquid flow faster into his friend. Their work was concentrated and efficient.

An alarm went off, sending one of the EMTs into hectic activity.

"He's crashing, get the paddles."

Danny helplessly watched how the big adhesive pads were placed on Steve's bloody exposed chest, and then the medic placed the paddles onto the pads.

"Loading… clear."

There was almost no movement from his friend when he was shocked, but the alarm stopped and the rhythmic beeping was back.

"Marc, intubate."

"What? He's breathing… why do you?…"

"Detective, let us do our job. He's barely hanging on. Trust me, he needs this. We need to stabilize him before we can even think about moving him," the senior medic interrupted Danny and explained what was going on.

The detective stepped back and let the professionals do their job; he knew that they were right. He was only in the way. Danny looked up just in time to see the second gurney being lifted and pushed into the ambulance.

They had obviously managed to stabilize Catherine, at least enough to rush her to the hospital. Danny had seen part of the damage the bullet had done, and had wondered instantly how she could still be alive.

A moment later his friend's gurney was also lifted and pushed into the second ambulance, ready to be taken to the Medical Center that was practically right next door.

H50 – H50 – H50

 _Time really had no meaning and they walked, stopping to take in the view, taking time to people watch and simply enjoying each other's company. They reached a small cove, the curved beach surrounded by flowering plants._

" _Let's stop here," Steve said, reaching out to pluck an orange flower from a nearby shrub. He smiled and tucked it behind Catherine's ear. "Wanna sit down?"_

" _Sure," she replied, dropping to the sand and leaning back onto her elbows. "This is beautiful. I mean, I've always known that Hawaii is gorgeous, but I feel like I've never really fully seen it. It seems more bright and colorful today."_

 _Steve nodded. "Yeah, it's kind of weird. I grew up here, but maybe I didn't appreciate it as much as I should have."_

" _Think we will stay here?" she asked, a bit of hesitation in her voice._

 _Steve turned onto his side, facing her, and propped his head on his hand, softly replying, "I haven't a clue… this is all pretty new to me, too."_

" _Yeah," she said. "I feel like I should be sad, but I'm not. I'm just… content."_

 _He leaned toward her and slowly kissed her lips. "Content? Is that all?" He kissed her again, moving closer as he did so. "I was maybe hoping for… excited?"_

 _She wrapped her arms around his neck and drew him closer. "Well… maybe excited, too." She raised her head while pulling him down toward her. "Let's… um… we can go with excited," she breathed and smiled at him._

 _The couple cuddled on the beach and watched the sun as it began to slip lower into the horizon._

" _I could never take that for granted," Catherine murmured watching the panorama before them. "It's so wonderful."_

" _Yeah, it-" Steve said, before he sucked in his breath; his eyes going wide at the sudden inability to breathe._

" _Steve?"_

" _I… I…" he tried to talk, to breathe; but he could do nothing but suck in short pants of air. He placed one hand on his stomach and doubled over onto his side with a groan, drawing his knees up to try and stop the pain._

" _Cath," he whispered, opening his eyes to look into her face. "I can't—"_

" _No, no, no," she cried. "You promised. Don't leave me."_

 _He managed to suck in half a breath and reached for her hand. "Love you…" The last thing he saw was tears streaming down her face and his heart was filled with sorrow._

 _Catherine cradled him to her until the light faded from his eyes and the hand holding hers went slack. She rocked back and forth, crying, finally choking on a sob._

" _You promised, Steve. This was forever."_

H50 – H50 – H50

Grover looked up when Danny again went past him on his endless circle of pacing. "Will you stop that! God damn it, you're driving us all nuts," Grover grumbled under his breath but still loud enough for Danny to hear.

It obviously had an impact on the detective who stopped and looked around, like he was seeing the waiting room for the first time. Grover patiently smiled at him. "Sit down, Danny," he softly said.

Williams sighed and sat down next to the big man. "What is taking them so long? It's been over four hours now, and we haven't heard anything."

"Well, no news is good news," Grover said. "It at least means they are still alive," he added.

"Yeah."

Having seen the amount of blood both their friends had lost, none of them were sure what that meant. _**Survival**_ wasn't everything, _**living**_ after was what was important.

"Had you known that Catherine was back?" Kono suddenly asked.

"Nah, not me. I had no idea," Danny answered shaking his head. "Last I heard, she was somewhere… doing something. Steve hasn't really talked about it after he learned about it from that CIA guy… or whoever he was."

"They had obviously made up," Grover provided the Intel he had gathered when he had seen Steve and Cath standing out front of HQ just before the shooting. "If there had been an issue between them, I'm sure it was resolved. The way they stood together… I mean…"

Their conversation was interrupted by a tired looking elderly doctor in blue scrubs, carrying two files.

"McGarrett-Rollins?" the surprisingly deep voice asked.

"That's us," Danny spoke up. "We're their friends and team. Captain Grover, Lieutenant Kelly and Officer Kalakaua."

"And you are?"

"I'm sorry, Danny Williams. How are Steve and Catherine?" Danny asked the question that was foremost on their minds.

"Let's move this into one of our offices," Dr. Akamu said and walked them to an office at the end of the hallway. It held a small conference table, seven chairs and technical equipment. "Please have a seat." The surgeon took a seat at the end of the table, facing the four members of Five-0, waiting for them to sit down.

"Are they going to be OK?" Danny again asked.

"Well, they made it through surgery," the doctor answered evasively. "Honestly, there is no easy answer to your question."

"But they are alive?" Chin wanted to know.

"Yes, Lieutenant Kelly. They are both alive. However, their injuries are serious. I can't stress that enough," Akamu said. "Let me explain what those injuries are and what we have done so far."

Grover watched the elderly doctor stand up and switch on the computer that was standing in the middle of the table. The screen came to life with the hospital logo which was replaced with a schematic they have often seen when CSU sent them evidence files.

"The bullet shattered Lt. Rollins' shoulder," Akamu explained, pointing to the entry angle. "It then went through lung tissue and exited the body fracturing the sternum. But it missed her heart. She was very lucky."

"You call that lucky?" Grover said.

"Oh yeah. Very," the doctor nodded almost enthusiastically. "Missing the heart was what saved her life. She lost a lot of blood, and we can't say yet if she will get full motion of her shoulder back, but she made it through surgery just fine. The damage to the lung was thankfully minimal."

"So, she will be OK?" Kono wanted to know.

"Her status is serious but stable. We're cautiously optimistic."

"What about Steve?" Danny asked the question they all wanted an answer to.

"Commander McGarrett also suffered serious blood loss. That was our most pressing concern. It was difficult to get the bleeding under control. Frankly, it was a real mess in there. The bullet went through Lt. Rollins, but fragmented in Commander McGarrett's body. Thankfully the fragments missed all major organs, which is a miracle in itself," the doctor further explained. "It did however cause an iliac crest fracture and…"

"What the heck is that?" Grover interrupted.

"It is part of his pelvis," Akamu said and pointed to the part on the computer screen. "A painful injury, but normally one that heals on its own over time. In addition to that and the muscle damage from the bullet fragments, he also suffered two broken ribs."

"So, there was no major damage?"

"No, detective. But the blood loss has us worried. We can't say for sure if there will be any organ damage due to insufficient blood supply. And due to the loss of blood there might not have been enough oxygen to fully sustain all organs."

"What are you talking about exactly?" Chin asked.

"Commander McGarrett is listed as critical at the moment. We might be looking at organ failure or worst case scenario even brain damage; but it is too early to tell. His injuries are not that serious alone, but the blood loss was dramatic," Amuku pointed out. "I'm sorry to be the bearer of such bad news."

"Can we see them?"

"Yes, of course. But you have to wait until they are both in ICU, they are still in recovery. You can wait upstairs. One of the nurses will tell you when they are ready."

"Thank you, Dr. Amuku," Danny said for all of them.

H50 – H50 – H50

* * *

So, there you have it. Alive… for now. But will they make it? Were they as lucky as the doctor thinks they were? Find out later this week. Sam and I are still arguing over which one to kill…

We'll see who will win. Any bets? ;-) …Sam


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks to everyone for reading.

There was brought up the issue whether this was a deathfic or not. Well, we think a good story should be like life… you never know what lies ahead, or what the next page will bring.

No story we're associated with will ever have a warning about a major or minor character death. Ever.

You know, we write these stories first and foremost for us. Because this is what we want to read. If others like what we're writing, well, that is just the icing on the cake. we will always write what we think is right for the story… or the situation… or the character. Never will we write what people wish for if that is not what we feel should happen.

And now, enjoy the next chapter. … Sam and Cokie

* * *

 **Irony, Chapter 3**

Catherine blinked and slowly opened her eyes, a look of confusion on her face. She felt disoriented and detached, trying to figure out what had happened. She turned her head checking her surroundings, hearing the low beeping of a heart monitor and seeing numerous bags of IVs and blood next to her bed. The fuzzy feeling wasn't going away and she tried to remember how she had ended up here.

There was movement by her bedside and someone leaned down close to her. A quiet voice got her attention.

"Cath?" Kono asked.

Catherine blinked again, finally able to focus on her friend. "Kono? What—?" She had to clear her dry throat, thankful that Kono offered her a couple of ice chips. After the ice had melted, she tried to repeat, "Wh'happened?"

"Don't worry, you're gonna be OK," Kono told her with a smile as she sat back down in the bedside chair. "The nurse will be here in a minute to check you."

Cath made a face and then closed her eyes. "Why'm I here?"

"What do you remember?" Chin asked, coming to stand behind Kono.

"I was on the beach. With Steve."

They saw the look of panic in her eyes when she looked around, searching for Steve. Cath gasped when her movements awakened the pain in her shoulder and chest and she squeezed her eyes shut, unable to stop a tear from leaking.

"Easy," Kono told her. "Just relax, everything's fine."

"Hey, is that gal awake?" Grover said in a loud whisper, peering around the curtain by the opened doorway.

"She just woke up," Kono told him.

Cath heard their voices and tried to force her tired eyes open once again, but the effort was too much. She was asleep before the nurse even made it into the room.

"Have you heard from Steve yet?" Chin asked Grover.

"They finally brought him in from Recovery," Lou replied. "Said his blood pressure was remaining pretty low even with all the blood they pumped back into him. I gotta tell you, those sheets have more color than he does."

"I bet," Chin replied, remembering all the blood that had covered the sidewalk that morning. "This was too close," he said, glancing back at Catherine. "Way too close."

"Yeah," Lou quietly agreed.

H50 - H50 – H50

"How's he doing?" Grover asked in a low voice after returning to Steve's room. He was again back in Steve's cubicle on the other side of ICU after having checked on Catherine and stepping outside to call Renee. He felt a lot calmer after talking to his wife and listening to her calm voice of reassurance.

"Still sleeping it off," Danny replied with a sigh. "How's Cath?"

"She woke up for a couple of minutes but was really confused. Kono said she said something about her and Steve being on the beach before she fell back to sleep."

"I wonder how long she's here for this time?" Danny asked, while standing and stretching his back and arms. He couldn't quite keep the tinge of bitterness out of his voice.

"That's up to them, I suppose," Lou told him. "And, I might add, none of our business," he said with a pointed look at Danny.

"Whatever," Danny mumbled, turning back to the bed when Steve's head lolled to the side.

"Steven, you awake?"

Steve made a face, giving them hope that he heard the question, but he didn't wake up.

His nurse came in for her half-hour check and Danny and Lou stepped out of the way while she checked the IVs and tubes leading to and from his body.

"How's he doin'?" Danny asked when she came back into the hall.

"He's holding his own," she replied. "We've got another unit of blood on the way. BP is still pretty low but hopefully that will increase with the additional unit. Right now, it's a waiting game, so just be patient with him."

H50 – H50 – H50

It was close to midnight when Catherine surfaced again. Chin had gone with Danny for some much needed coffee but Kono had remained by her bedside, not wanting her to awaken and be alone.

Cath tried to move and groaned when her shoulder sent warning signals of pain straight to her brain.

"Easy, Cath," Kono told her, leaning forward in her seat.

"It hurts," Cath mumbled, trying to move her right arm to check out the sling on her injured one.

"Yeah, I know it does," Kono agreed. "Just try not to move around."

Catherine lay still for a moment, knowing she was in the hospital, but having no recollection of how she got there. Had the op gone wrong? No, she had already left Ukraine. What had she done?

Kono.

Kono was here.

Kono meant Hawaii.

And Hawaii meant Steve.

Suddenly her eyes flew open and she looked wildly around the room.

"Easy, girlfriend…"

"Kono? Steve? … Where?"

The nurse rushed into the room. "Easy, there," she told her patient. "All of a sudden your vitals went off the chart. Everything is fine, just relax—"

"No, I need… where's Steve?" Catherine cried out and tried to get up. She plopped back the inch she managed to raise off the bed and groaned in pain.

The nurse looked to Kono, wondering if telling her would be worse than wondering what had happened.

Kono leaned over the bed. "Cath, look at me. Calm down, OK? Steve was injured, too. But he's right across the hall. Just take it easy; you're gonna be fine. You both will be," Kono assured her even though she wasn't certain about the outcome for her boss.

Catherine's eyes closed and she grimaced in pain, her breath beginning to come in short pants of air.

The nurse increased the flow of oxygen from the cannula. "Slow your breathing," she told her patient. "Nice and easy."

"I need Steve," she whispered once again. "Please… he was just with me…"

H50 – H50 – H50

On the other side of the ICU, Grover sat, watching Steve sleep. Danny and Chin were still downstairs but he had opted out, not wanting to leave his friend alone. He was worried, still hearing the doctor talk about brain damage or organ failure. All things Lou couldn't quite wrap his head around. Another thing Lou was still trying to figure out was the odds of the two of them getting shot by a random sniper. And in the parking lot of Five-0 Headquarters no less.

He quickly looked up when Steve jerked, a pained expression on his face.

"Steve? Hey, my friend, you awake?" he quietly asked.

"Unh…" The look on his face changed from one of pain to one filled with confusion. "Lou?"

"Yeah. I'm right here, just take it easy."

He could see Steve trying to process where he was and what had happened, but he chose to keep quiet, letting the man orient himself to his surroundings.

Steve finally opened his eyes and blinked in the dim light. He slowly turned his head, taking in the various IVs and monitors surrounding him. He licked his dry lips and focused on his friend.

"Which bus hit me?"

Lou shook his head and grinned at his friend, hoping to cross 'brain damage' off the list of possible outcomes. "That bad, huh?"

"Yeah," Steve sighed, closing his eyes once again, gritting his teeth from pain.

"Commander?" the nurse spoke, entering the room and moving to the other side of the bed. "How are you feeling? It's time for more pain meds."

"That'd be—" he grimaced when his injured leg twitched. "Good," he finished. "What'd I do, Lou?"

"What do you remember?" he asked, watched the nurse push the meds into the IV line.

"It's all kind of a blank," Steve admitted, feeling the cold of the drugs hit his vein before it quickly bathed him in a welcomed fuzziness.

"You were shot outside of HQ this morning."

"Shot?" Steve tried to keep his eyes open, but was unsuccessful. "Can't remem…" He sucked in his breath and opened his eyes. "Cath!"

"Calm down, Steve. She's gonna be all right. Just relax."

"I have to—" he tried to finish his thought, but the call of drug-induced sleep pulled him under too quickly.

H50 – H50 – H50

Mieke, the ICU nurse assigned to Steve that night, glanced at the monitor in front of her and then checked the clock. With a sigh, she stood up.

"What's wrong, Mieke?" her colleague asked.

"The commander is very restless tonight. I'm afraid I'm missing something," she told Colleen as she headed back to his room.

The lights were dim and she turned on the one behind the bed to get a better look at her patient. "What's going on with you," she murmured to the sleeping man, laying the backs of her fingers against his cheek to check for fever. Thankfully, she didn't notice any difference since the last time she had checked, although the aide would be in soon for a full assessment.

Steve turned his head into the touch he felt on his cheek and slowly blinked open his eyes.

"Hi, Commander," she whispered. "Didn't mean to wake you. How do you feel?"

It took him several seconds to process her words. "I need to go…" He tried to push the blanket off.

Mieke smiled and reached for his hand. "Just where do you want to go?"

Steve closed his eyes and thought. _He needed to be somewhere. Where?_ _The beach._ "Left Cath on the beach. Have to find her." He tried once again to get rid of the blanket, groaning when he hit his leg.

"Shh, don't move around. She's OK. Cath is asleep in her room. You need to relax and try to sleep, too."

"But, the beach… no… not beach. The sidewalk." He began to panic and moved again, biting his lip when pain shot from his abdomen all the way to his toes. He clamped his teeth together to keep from crying out, only keening, "She's dead."

"Easy, Commander, lie still. I promise, Cath is here in the hospital. She's alive. You're both safe."

"No, dead," he whispered before falling back into a fitful, sleep.

The episode was repeated several times throughout the night until Dr. Akamu arrived at first light and ordered a sedative which ensured his patient finally slept.

H50 – H50 – H50

"Steve and I were on the way to work to tell you that I was back," Catherine quietly told Kono and Chin the following morning.

She had had a mostly uneventful night and the doctor had been pleased to see that her vitals were much better when he checked earlier that morning. "We had a great weekend..." she smiled. "That is, after I got up enough courage Friday night to knock on his door and beg for forgiveness."

"I'm gonna guess it worked, Girlfriend," Kono said, smiling at her.

"Yeah… the weekend was so nice. And we were excited to tell everyone," Cath said around a yawn. "Are you sure he's OK?"

"How about I go over and check for you," Chin offered and stood.

"Would you?" she looked up at him with relief. "Please? Tell him… just tell him I miss him."

Chin grinned at her. "I will do that."

"Kono, can you tell me again what happened?" Cath asked. "Everything feels like a dream; I can't explain it, but I remember things that don't make sense."

"Of course. You and Steve were shot outside HQ early yesterday morning," Kono patiently explained. "There was a sniper on the roof across the street who wanted to make a name for himself before he committed suicide. A stupid act of violence, but he won't hurt anyone else. HPD found him up there after he had killed himself."

"And Steve's gonna be OK?"

"The last time they talked to his doctor, he said Steve's vitals are improving. Just like you, it will take time for him to heal. The bullet went through you and into Steve and lodged somewhere in his pelvis." Kono paused, remembering the scene on the sidewalk the day before. "You both were really lucky. It could have been a whole lot worse."

"Have you seen him?" Cath asked.

Kono smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I popped in this morning before I came in here. He was still sleeping. Chin will give you an update when he gets back."

Cath smiled and yawned once again. "Thank you."

"Why don't you try to sleep until he comes back? I'll be right here."

"Wake me up, OK?" she asked, her eyes closing before she even finished her sentence.

"Will do. Get some rest."

H50 – H50 – H50

"Any action on this side of ICU?" Chin asked, stepping into the room. He quickly realized that Steve wasn't awake. He stared at the bed, seeing that Steve was lying flat with his feet raised slightly higher than his head.

"Doc said they will give him another unit of blood this morning," Grover told him. "His BP is still too low, but overall he was pleased."

"That sounds fairly positive," Chin replied. "Although he looks mighty uncomfortable."

"Don't he, though? They're hoping to keep the blood flowing. How's Catherine?"

"Hurting, tired, still kind of confused. She said when they were hit they were on their way to tell us that she was back in Hawaii. And apparently, that she was staying here."

"It's a damned shame." Grover said. "Finally getting back together and then have this happen."

"Yeah, it's pretty cruel irony," Chin agreed. "But at least she was here and not half way around the world. That would have killed him."

"Yeah, ain't it the truth." He glanced down at Steve who hadn't moved a muscle. "Nurse said he was pretty restless and in a lotta pain last night," he whispered. "Said they are gonna try to keep him pretty much sedated for a bit."

"Probably a smart move," Chin agreed. "If not, he will aggravate the hell out of them."

Grover grinned. "That he will."

"Where's Danny?" Chin asked.

"He went to HPD to make sure everything is in order from yesterday's events. Not sure what there is to do though… the guy is dead. Thankfully he's the only one."

"I think he just needs to clear his head," Chin answered. "Well, I need to go talk to Cath. She wanted an update on Steve so I promised I would check. I'll go talk to her and then come sit here awhile if you want to head out."

"Yeah, thanks. I may walk around a bit, but I'll stick around here for a while. As long as HPD can reach us by phone, I think we're good to stay here."

H50 – H50 – H50

"Urgh… Cath?" Steve's eyes opened later that afternoon and he looked furiously around the room, gasping when he jerked his leg. "Shit, that hurts," he groaned.

"Take it easy," Grover told him. "Everyone's OK. I take it you remember what happened?"

"Cath was shot, Steve quickly replied, sucking in a deep breath. "She was dead—"

"No," Chin quickly leaned forward and placed his hand on Steve's shoulder. "She's OK. Banged up, but she's gonna be fine. She's asleep right now, but Kono is with her."

Steve stared at them in confusion. "Not dead?" his face was scrunched up in thought. "But I remember…"

"Steve, she's just across the ICU from you. I swear, she's alive and is asking about you."

"She's OK," Danny said from the open doorway. "I checked on her before I came to see you. Guess that just shows you who I like the best. How're you doing, Steven?"

Steve closed his eyes and thought for a moment. "I hurt like hell," he finally admitted. "But I guess that's a good thing."

"You know, I've always known that you and Cath were competitive, but this is ridiculous," Danny told him. "What was the bet, huh? Who could lose more blood than the other?"

One side of Steve's mouth curled upward and he opened his eyes to seek out his partner. "Did I win?" he asked in a gravelly voice.

Before Danny had a chance to answer, Steve was once again asleep.

H50 – H50 – H50

Steve blinked open his eyes and tried to see in the dim room. He didn't know if it was day or night, or even how long he had been there. He was alone and he was glad of that fact. One, he didn't feel like talking and two, he needed to make sense of what had happened.

Or thought he remembered.

His thoughts were a jumble of disassociated things. He knew he had been shot; but yet he remembered clearly being on the beach walking with Cath, too. He wasn't sure when that had happened. When he was awake earlier, they had said Cath was alive. Injured, but alive. He had to hold on to that thought. He had just gotten her back… he couldn't lose her again. Especially not like that. Most likely because someone had targeted him. He still didn't know who or why, but maybe this time he could stay awake long enough to find out some answers.

Steve heard soft beeping and looked around the room, realizing he was in a glass-enclosed ICU room with the sliding glass door partially open. The glass side walls were covered with curtains but he heard muted sounds coming from the desk outside and turned his head that direction, seeing people in different color scrubs rushing back and forth. The colors made him dizzy and the movement made him nauseous so he closed his eyes, knowing that upchucking would be very, very unpleasant. Steve swallowed down the bile and felt something in the back of his throat; he dragged up a heavy hand to feel what was there. They had stuck a tube up his nose.

 _That needs to go,_ he thought.

"Ah, ah, ah, leave the hardware alone," Danny said from the open doorway. He moved across the small room to stand beside the bed. "No touching."

"What's it?" Steve asked, his voice gravelly around the tube.

"Suction," Grover replied while moving to the end of the bed and taking a close look at his friend. "How're you feelin'?"

" 'M, K," he rasped and closed his eyes when a small movement sent a harsh spike of pain from his hip region. "What time is it? And where's Cath?"

Danny pointed out the door. "She's on the other side of the unit. We just checked on her and she's fine. Kono's with her; don't worry we'll take care of her for you. As for the time, it's almost 9:30. P.M."

"2130", Steve immediately mumbled and raised his head slightly to look at his body. He had a thin blanket pulled up to his waist and was wearing a flimsy hospital gown. An IV line in his right arm trailed to a pole behind his head and he also had a central line. His left arm also had a capped off line.

He could work with that. He just needed to get rid of the monitors and those other annoying tubes.

Steve looked at his friends with determination. "Take me to her."

"Really?" Danny snorted and looked at him like he had grown another head.

"Ain't gonna happen, Brother," Grover quickly replied.

"Listen, I have—"

"Steve, just shut up. You aren't going anywhere."

"Don't tell me what to do," Steve angrily replied. "I just need a wheelchair."

"Commander, you're awake," a voice said from behind his friends. They parted to allow the nurse to move closer to the bed. "I'm Mieke, and I'm your nurse again tonight. Now, did I hear something about a wheelchair?" she asked with a smile.

Steve remained silent, but Danny had no problem answering her. "He wants to go visit Catherine over there," he said with another wave of his hand.

Mieke checked the IV lines and the suction line that led from Steve's nose down to the bag attached to the bedframe. With a shake of her head, she told him, "I'm sorry, Commander, but that won't happen tonight. But that's your goal for getting better, right?" She patted his arm and turned to leave. "I'll be right outside if you need anything. It will soon be time for your pain meds."

"I need to make sure she's OK," he tried again after Mieke left.

"Steve," Lou calmly said, "We are taking care of her. You focus on getting well yourself. We've got your back."

Steve closed his eyes, more from exhaustion than frustration. "I just… I need to know she's really alive."

"Steven, come on," Danny said, moving closer to the bed. "We're not lyin' to you. She's alive, I swear."

"I need to see for myself. Don't you get that?" Steve whispered with desperation in his voice. "I remember her dying, and then I met her on…" his voice trailed off when he tried to remember where he had been.

"You met her where?" Danny asked.

Steve shook his head in frustration. "Dunno. Thought we were on the beach."

Danny thought back to the sidewalk where Steve and Catherine had been found. "Trust me, that was no beach," he muttered.

"Hey, I've got a thought," Grover said. "Where's Steve's phone?"

"Uh, the bag in the closet, I think," Danny told him. "Why?"

Lou quickly pulled out the cell phone and said, "Be right back. Let's see if this works."

"What's he doin',?" Steve tiredly asked and shifted again in bed. He hissed under his breath when it again caused pain to erupt in his hip. "What's wrong with my leg?"

"The bullet hit some kind of crest… your pelvis, I think, and cracked it. So don't go moving it."

"Where'd Lou go?" Steve asked, craning his head to look out the door. "What's he doin'?" he repeated.

"Haven't a clue. Seriously, Steve, quit worrying. And stop fidgeting."

"Who…" He tried to focus, becoming increasingly more tired the longer he was awake. He tried to collect his thoughts enough to ask the question. "Do you know who did this?"

"As a matter of fact we do," Danny replied. "And I'm happy to tell you that neither you nor Cath were the target. Well, not really. HPD found the guy on the roof where he opened fire. He left a note. Looks like suicide by cop. He wanted to take someone with him when he killed himself. Unfortunately, you and Catherine were in his sight at the time."

"So, it wasn't anyone—"

"No one out to get you. Or Cath. I swear. You aren't to blame."

Steve's eyes closed. "Doesn't change the outcome," he murmured, thinking about Catherine's lifeless body in his arms.

"Hey, he still awake?" Lou asked, coming back in the room.

"Barely."

"Yeah," Steve said.

"Good, because Cath just woke up, too. Open them peepers and check your phone, McGarrett."

Steve opened his eyes and looked at Grover who was holding the phone in his line of vision. "Huh?"

"This is the wonderful world of Skype. I got it from my daughter and her friends. I'm sure you've heard of it." Lou pointed to the screen. "Look, there's Cath."

"Hey, Commander," she said in a weak voice, with a tired smile on her face.

Steve saw her on the screen, his own video playing in the right corner. "Cath. I'm sorry."

"Not your fault," she said. "How are you?"

"Good," he immediately said which earned him an eye-roll from her. "How about you?"

"Sore," she admitted with a yawn. "And tired, I guess."

"I want to see you."

"Yeah, me, too," she admitted. "Love you."

"Love you, too. Gonna come see you soon."

"I'll be waiting."

The image changed and Kono appeared on the screen. "OK, Boss, you both need to get some rest. Catherine's really tired and I'm sure you are, too."

"Let me see her again," Steve ordered. When the screen was turned back toward Cath he touched her image with shaky fingers. "Night," he whispered. "Be safe."

She smiled into the camera. "You, too."

"I'm keeping the phone here," he told her. "If you need me… "

"I will. Promise. Goodnight, Steve."

Steve closed his eyes when her image disappeared. "Thanks," he told Lou, swallowing the lump in his throat. "I needed to see her," he said with a smile.

"Now, how about you simmering down for the night, huh? Tomorrow will be better," Grover told him.

"Yeah, 'm tired," Steve agreed, his eyes closing once again. "What time's it?" he asked once again.

Mieke had come back into the room, a syringe in her hand. "It's way past ten, Commander. Let's try to get you comfortable so you can sleep better tonight, OK?" she said, emptying the syringe into the IV line. "Gentlemen, Commander McGarrett needs his rest and visiting hours were over a while ago. I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

"Steve?" Danny said, but his partner was already sound asleep, still clutching his phone, a half smile still on his face.

H50 – H50 – H50

Steve woke an hour later, feeling sticky and itchy. He remembered the small movements he had done earlier and knew that no matter what, he did _**not**_ want to move his right leg. But he wasn't comfortable and didn't know what to do about it.

"Commander?" a quiet voice spoke as the nurse moved to his bedside. "Can't sleep? I can increase your pain meds if you need it."

"Don't think it is that," Steve said, his voice still raspy. "Just feel off. Hot, I think."

"You are running a slight fever," Mieke told him. "It's common after surgery. I can have some Tylenol brought up for you."

"How about some water?" Steve asked.

"How about ice chips instead," she offered, reaching for a small cup on the bedside stand. "Let me help."

She placed one hand behind his neck to help him raise up and with the other, spooned in a couple of ice chips. "How's that?"

With a sigh, he allowed the ice to melt, his eyes closed.

"Is that better?" she asked.

"Yeah, thanks." His voice was quiet. "Can you take that hose outta my nose?"

"Do you mean that 'small tube' leading down to your stomach? No, not yet," she said with a smile. "It's working to keep you from upchucking right now. And I know you don't want that."

He frowned. "Don' like it," he told her.

"Shh, it will be fine. Just go back to sleep."

H50 – H50 – H50

Mieke kept careful watch on the monitors at the large desk in the open ICU. The blood pressure cuff on Steve's arm had been set to record at ten minute intervals and she was concerned that his pressure was dropping. After the latest reading, she quickly put down her pen and walked into his room to check him manually.

She was alarmed at what greeted her when she stepped next to McGarrett's bed.

H50 – H50 – H50


	4. Chapter 4

I know there have been doubts, but Irony is finished. I hope you enjoy this final chapter of this story. When we began, I thought we would have two chapters, tops. Silly me. But I like where we went with it. Thanks for sticking with us! …Cokie

Actually, this was supposed to be a really short one-shot. It was never intended to get past the first scene of two people getting killed… I mean, shot. I meant to say getting shot. Ups.

Anyway, even if it takes us sometimes a little longer to finish a story… never fear, we will always finish it. Thank you for reading. …Sam

* * *

 **Irony – Chapter 4**

Mieke kept careful watch on the monitors at the large desk in the open ICU. The blood pressure cuff on Steve's arm had been set to record at ten minute intervals and she was concerned that his pressure was dropping. After the latest reading, she quickly put down her pen and walked into his room to check on him.

She was alarmed at what greeted her when she stepped next to McGarrett's bed. Her patient was bathed in sweat and in obvious discomfort. He didn't look awake, but he was very animated; mumbling and groaning.

"Commander? Can you hear me?"

H50 – H50 – H50

Steve tried to focus on the woman talking to him with urgency in her voice. But it was so hard to concentrate. He felt dizzy and cold; his head hurt and there was an ache all over his body like one he never felt before. His abdomen pulsed away with burning hot pain. And his right hip was one big agony. It didn't help that most of his muscles were contracting on their own.

It took a few moments for the fuzz in his brain to clear. "Commander, can you hear me?"

"Yeah," Steve croaked and wondered whose voice that was.

"How do you feel?" Steve heard the question and felt a gentle hand on his forehead. He had yet to open his eyes, knowing that it would increase the pain in his head.

"Like crap," Steve admitted and hissed when he moved his leg. "Hurting all over, feel sick… 'm tired," he added, finding it hard to concentrate on his answer.

"Is there a specific pain that's worse than the rest?"

"Wha'?"

"What hurts the most?" The kind nurse rephrased her question.

Steve only had to think about that for a second. The pain in his abdomen was off the charts. "Stomach," he answered, accompanied by a groan. He felt his breathing speed up even more, and the room hadn't stopped spinning since he woke up. Steve was feeling worse by the minute while the sounds around him were fading into the background again. The only noise remaining seemed to be the roaring in his head, and a frantic beeping sound.

But soon even that ceased and Steve slipped back into oblivion.

H50 – H50 – H50

After Steve had passed out again, Mieke turned to the doctor who had just arrived in the cubicle. "He complained about severe pain, his abdomen is rigid, his BP 80/40, skin clammy and cold, breathing up to 30 per minute, body temp 101," Mieke gave the basic information.

"That's not good," Dr. Eniou, the attendant for the night, said. "Let's do an ultrasound."

A short few minutes later it was clear why the patient had deteriorated at such an alarming rate. "There's a lot of free blood in the abdominal cavity," Dr. Eniou grumbled. "He needs to go to the OR stat."

"I'll call ahead and …

H50 – H50 – H50

 _Steve felt the grit of the sand between his toes as he ran in the surf. His lungs were working to capacity as he heaved much needed air into them. He was frantic, running from the water up onto the sand to look behind foliage at the edge of the beach._

 _She was gone. Cath was nowhere._

 _And he needed her. He needed to find her now._

 _The sunshine's warm rays from the morning had disappeared as black clouds replaced the brightness. Thunder rolled in across the ocean and he knew this was no mere afternoon storm. Instead, this would be what his dad had always termed a 'gully washer'. Lightning was flashing around him, so close that he could feel the sizzle. Fat drops of water began to pelt him, bringing pain as they increased in number and in intensity._

 _Steve was quickly soaked and what little light he had to work with disappeared, making the landscape more stark with each jagged streak of lightning. But he couldn't leave; he had to find Catherine._

 _He had left her here and now he had to find her. She was alone. Out there someplace. And he knew he couldn't stay here alone either. He needed her._

 _Steve ran until he could run no more and finally dropped to his knees, raising his face to the dark sky and screaming_ _ **"Catherine!"**_ _; his voice half guttural cry and half sob._

 _The only sounds he heard were those of the storm raging around him._

 _He was alone._

H50 – H50 – H50

"He's crashing," the surgeon called out before they could even begin their emergency surgery. "Get that blood flowing, and get more fluids in him. Gary, do something, or we're gonna lose him," he spoke urgently to the anesthesiologist.

"We don't have time to wait for him to be stable, you need to stop the bleed," came the clipped answer.

"OK, we're opening him up."

H50 – H50 – H50

 _The stormed seemed to pass over, but the dark clouds still hung heavy in the sky. Steve sat in the wet sand and pondered what to do. He had looked everywhere for her, but she was nowhere to be found._

 _He felt so tired, so utterly exhausted. He was wet, cold and shivering and he could barely keep his teeth from chattering. With a groan, he let himself fall back and look up at the darkening sky._

" _Cath, where are you?" he called out before closing his eyes._

H50 – H50 – H50

Catherine slept fitfully, although in a drug-aided sleep. Her injuries were painful and even asleep, she couldn't get comfortable. Suddenly she gasped and raised up on her right elbow, trying to catch her breath. "Steve!" she cried.

Her night nurse was quickly by her side.

"Catherine, easy. Everything's OK, let's get you lying back down."

"No. Where's Steve? I heard him. Just a minute ago – I heard him call my name."

"Shh, you were just having a dream."

"No, really. I heard him call. Please, I need to see Steve."

"Catherine, you can't get up yet. Just relax and take a deep breath for me. Your stats are all over the chart. Come on, calm your breathing. Do you need anything for pain?"

Cath slowly shook her head, finally realizing where she was and remembering that Steve was across the hall. "Is Steve asleep?" she quietly asked.

"Yes, dear, he's asleep. And you need to go back to sleep, too. You'll feel better in the morning."

"OK," Catherine whispered while closing her eyes. The frantic feeling that woke her was disappearing and she felt like she could breathe again.

"It was so real," she said as she drifted to sleep. "I heard his voice…"

H50 – H50 – H50

"Is she OK, Annie?" Mieke asked when the nurse returned to the station.

"Yeah, she is now. Said she heard Commander McGarrett calling her name."

Mieke glanced over at her patient's empty room. "Those two really have a connection, don't they? I just hope he makes it through surgery and he's back in here before we have to give her the news."

"Me, too," Annie agreed. "If he doesn't make it, I don't think she will want to, either."

H50 – H50 – H50

Kono was seated by Catherine's bed, scrolling through her phone, when she heard a soft sigh. She set down her phone and waited, not looking forward to the coming conversation.

She didn't have to wait long before Cath opened her eyes looking around the room in panic.

"Steve!" She slowed her breathing when she saw Kono seated next to the bed. "Kono."

"Hey, Cath. How're you feeling?"

"Um, OK I guess. Stiff and sore." She felt like she was forgetting something. "Is it morning?"

"Yeah, a little after seven."

"Were you here all night?"

"Nah, sister, they kicked me out last night," she replied with a smile. "You were sound asleep. I just got back here."

Catherine felt the bed beside where she was lying, then glanced around the room.

"What's wrong?" Kono asked, standing up.

"My phone. Do you see it?" She smiled. "This time, I want to call Steve. Have you seen him this morning?"

"Um, not yet," Kono said. "Hey, Chin is outside. Let me go get him. He said he didn't feel comfortable sitting here watching you sleep. Be right back," she told her, before escaping out the door.

Kono returned a couple minutes later with both Chin and a nurse.

"Hello, Lieutenant," the nurse said. "I'm Kari. How do you feel this morning?"

"I'm OK," she said, her eyes darting among all three. "What's wrong? It's Steve, isn't it?"

Chin sighed and moved closer to the bed, speaking quietly. "Cath, during the night they took Steve back into surgery."

Catherine closed her eyes for a moment before focusing back on them. "What happened?" she whispered, her voice shaky.

"He developed an internal bleed, so they went in to close it," Kari quietly explained to her. "Surgery is over and they have taken him to Recovery where they will probably monitor him for a while."

"I need to see him."

"Cath, you're not ready for that," Kono told her.

"You don't understand. I need—"

"Hey, Catherine," the nurse soothed. "The commander can't have visitors right now. He's in Recovery. But I promise, the minute he gets back to ICU, we'll let you see him."

"You promise?" she asked while trying not to let them see her cry.

"I swear to you, somehow I will make sure you see him. But right now, you need to concentrate on getting well yourself. The doctor will be here soon to examine you. How about some breakfast before then?"

"I'm not hungry," she quickly said, but saw the look on the nurse's face. "OK, I guess I can eat a little. But can I get up and go to the bathroom?" She had been so glad when she was allowed up the night before.

"Yes, that's a good idea," the nurse told her. "Walking will help you heal. Just a minute and I'll get you unhooked."

"I think that's my cue to leave," Chin said, leaning forward and kissing Cath on the forehead. "I'm going to go wait with Lou."

"Where's Danny?" Cath asked him.

"Ah, I think he's at HQ."

"I can tell Danny's not pleased," she said quietly. "With me."

"Girl, you know Danny," Kono chimed in. "When is he ever pleased with anything?"

"I got the impression when he popped in yesterday that he isn't happy I came back. I guess he doesn't trust me."

"Hey, don't worry about Danny," Chin told her. "You concentrate on getting yourself well. We'll check back in later," he told her before heading out.

H50 – H50 – H50

Lou Grover stood in the doorway to the recovery ward, where they said he could sit with his friend for a few minutes. He smiled up at the illuminated ceiling and again thought that everything in Hawaii seemed to be different. Chicago hospitals didn't have fluffy white clouds on the ceilings.

Grover made his way over to one of the beds on the left side, only giving a short, friendly nod to the woman sitting next to the second bed occupied by a young man. Lou thought that he couldn't be older than maybe 20. And judging by the look of it, he wasn't any better off than the man Lou came to see.

Surprisingly, Steve wasn't connected to as many wires and machines as Lou had feared. There was a BP cuff that probably inflated automatically at a set rate. Grover recognized the very low beeping of the heart monitor, and wondered why they kept the sound on. There were two IVs, one attached to a clear, small bottle and a bigger clear bag; the other leading to a bag of blood. He wondered just how many units of blood that made since Steve was brought in?

Steve's upper body was wrapped in gauze, and a big tube came out of his side. Drainage, Lou thought with a shudder. Lou looked at the little thingy on Steve's finger, the one small device Lou never could figure out how it worked. But he knew it measured the oxygen level and pulse of the patient.

Lou was surprised that Steve only had a nasal canula. He learned, before he was allowed in, that Steve was still critical and would be placed back in ICU after his stint here in recovery. But before he could be moved he needed to be stable. Which he wasn't, as the doctor had explained.

Grover sat down in the chair and just now realized that his friend was covered in sweat. His face was not relaxed as one would think, but lines of pain were visible.

"Steve? Can you hear me?" Grover softly talked to his friend, hoping to get a reaction.

"Ugh."

Lou wasn't sure if what he heard was a grunt of pain, or if Steve tried to say something. "Steve?"

No answer came from the injured task force leader.

"Captain Grover?" Lou turned around when the nurse addressed him.

"Yes? I'm sorry, am I in the way?"

"No, no, it's fine. I just wanted to tell you that the lieutenant woke up and is asking about Commander McGarrett."

"Oh. Thank you. I'll go see her in a few minutes."

"You can stay a bit if you like."

"Thank you. We really appreciate what you're doing," Grover said and smiled at the nurse as she turned to leave.

Lou looked back at his friend, moving closer to the bed. "Steve, listen to me. Your girl wants to know how you are, so you better get well. Don't make me a liar."

H50 – H50 – H50

 _Steve quickly sat up and looked around the beach. He was positive he had heard a voice, but there was no one nearby. The rain had ended although he could still see the lightning in the distance out over the dark, rolling water. Thunder echoed in the background, which was what he probably had heard._

 _He checked the perimeter; Cath was still nowhere to be found. Steve reached up his hand to wipe the sweat stinging his eyes. He had been freezing earlier, but now he felt the steamy, stifling heat radiating that seemed to be always present after a storm._

 _He stood and looked back from where he had come. He had searched diligently for Cath and she wasn't there. He turned in the opposite direction and sighed, while placing one foot in front of the other. His body ached and he felt beaten down, but he knew he couldn't quit. He wouldn't stop in his quest until he found Catherine._

 _Or die trying._

 _Once again, he wiped sweat from his eyes and stared into the distance. Lightning still flashed over the water but as he continued down the beach, a small patch of white appeared on the horizon. Finally a break in the dark clouds. And it gave him hope._

 _He was still weak and his gait was anything but sure, but he continued to walk toward that small patch of sky._

 _Surely Catherine would be there._

H50 – H50 – H50

Steve felt like he was on a roller coaster. Whatever he was riding took a corner and then quickly bumped over something on the surface. Whatever it was jarred him and it hurt! _Where was he going?_ He slowly became aware of muted sounds which were steadily became clearer. He again felt 'off', hot and sick, and he knew that something wasn't right, but he wasn't sure what it exactly was that was wrong. And he also wasn't sure that he cared.

He drifted, knowing there was something he needed to remember, something important that he needed to do, but when the ride stopped moving, the steady beeping sound he heard lulled him back to sleep.

H50 – H50 – H50

 _The patch of white sky continued to push away the dark clouds and Steve kept his eyes on his target. Soon, half the sky was lit with a watery-blue sky and white clouds. He still tiredly pressed onward; seeing no one on his journey. His breathing wasn't quite as labored and he wasn't burning up like before, so all in all, he felt better. If only he could find Catherine everything would be great._

 _The water was beginning to glisten with the sun's rays and they began to shine through the clouds. And up ahead, he saw her._

 _Catherine turned and smiled at him. All was well._

H50 – H50 – H50

"Say what?" Lou rolled his eyes and shook his head as he spoke into the phone. "Yeah, I get it, he kinda looks like the wallpaper paste we used when Renee and I almost got a divorce." He grinned and explained, "We tried to wallpaper the kitchen together. Worst day ev-er. I'm not tryin' to be mean, but yeah, I agree, he needs a little color. OK, gimme a sec, I'll tell her."

Steve woke once again to the steady beeping sound. Along with it he could hear other noises and he realized that, in the midst of the beeps and blips, he heard words… and as more of his world came into focus, he recognized that voice. Lou.

"Woman, would you wait just a second?" Grover said into the phone. "Just like a magpie," he said in a low voice, grinning, knowing that she could hear him over the line. "Nurse Mieke, I'm not trying to tell you how to do your job or nothin', but _**she**_ wants me to tell you that Commander McGarrett is too pale… her words… and she wants to know if you agree. I mean, not that I'm questioning anythin', but the lady is concerned."

A female voice Steve didn't recognize laughed and answered, "Yes, I do know that the commander is pale; I totally agree with her. She does need to realize that he is recovering from his second major surgery in three days and that we are still pumping blood back into him. She also needs to realize that he has a lot of healing to do. But please tell her that he is doing just fine. Now… I have a suggestion, too," she added with a grin. "Would you please tell her for me that she needs to turn over, close her eyes and take a nap!"

Grover nodded. "Hey, she said… Oh, you heard that, huh? Well, alrighty. How about you enjoy that nap? Talk to you later."

"Sorry about that," Lou said as he placed his phone in his pocket.

"I totally understand," the nurse agreed. "She's worried. But she needs to get some rest. Worrying about the commander isn't helping her one bit."

The conversation he heard hadn't made much sense to Steve's not-up-to-speed brain and he tried to sort out the information. _Two surgeries? When did that happen? And why? And who was Lou talking to?_

 _Even asking the questions to himself made his head hurt. But he knew he had to figure out what was going on._

Steve slowly opened his eyes and blinked in the bright light before quickly closing them once again. "Lou?" he said, unsure that the low, hoarse voice he heard was actually his.

"Steve! You're awake."

"Hello, Commander. How do you feel?" the female voice asked and he turned his head to see her, realizing by her scrubs that she was a nurse. He glanced around and recognized the ICU, but couldn't remember why he was there. He remained silent, trying to gather his scattered thoughts.

"Steve?" Lou patiently waited for his friend to process his surroundings.

"How about some ice?" the nurse asked, holding out a spoon.

He nodded and opened his eyes once again, saying "Please". The memory of the shooting came into focus and he gasped, "Where's Cath? Lou, where's Cath? Is she—"

"Calm down, she's gonna be fine. You, on the other hand, know how to scare the bejeebies outta everyone."

Steve tried to remember what had happened to him but other than the dull throb throughout his body, he came up blank.

"I do have something that might make you feel better," Lou told him. "Do you feel like someone is watching you?"

"Huh?"

"We pulled some strings," Lou replied. "You have Mieke and another nurse, Annie, to thank for this. He pointed to the side wall. "Look over there."

"Here," the Mieke said, pushing the tray table out of the way. "Can you see over here? We pushed aside the curtain."

Steve turned his head and stared, finally getting the scene before him into focus. There was a wall of glass with a bed on the opposite side. Staring back at him were the prettiest brown eyes he had ever seen.

"Cath," he whispered, a smile spreading across his face.

She had a matching smile for him and he saw her lips move. "I love you."

He nodded at her and grinned before his eyes closed. Steve quickly opened them again, trying to stay awake.

"Don't fight it," the nurse told him. "You need to sleep and heal."

" 'M tired," he said, glancing back at Catherine who was still watching him.

She blew him a kiss and then waved, watching as his eyes closed.

H50 – H50 – H50

Catherine woke up, remembering that something was different. She lay with her eyes closed and quickly catalogued how she was feeling, noting that although she was still sore and her body was stiff from lying around for far too long, she did feel better. _**Much**_ better. And that led to what was different. The evening before she had been moved out of ICU into a regular room. While she should be pleased of that fact, the move took her away from Steve. He had been asleep when they had moved her and she hadn't been allowed to say goodbye.

She sighed and opened her eyes, glancing around the new room.

And was startled to see a smiling face staring back at her.

"Steve!" she whispered, reaching out her hand for his. "You shouldn't be here. Did you sneak—"

Steve tried to look appalled that she would think he had snuck out of ICU. But his grin gave it away.

"Of course I didn't sneak out," he quickly told her and squeezed her hand. He leaned back in the wheelchair he was seated in, wincing when the movement tugged on his stitches. "The nurse said I needed to sit up for a while and I pleaded with her to let me sit down here. I've got about eight minutes left before her break is over and I have to go back," he sadly told her. "But I promised you I would come see you, so I did."

Catherine smiled and tugged their clasped hands to her mouth. "Took you long enough, Sailor!"

 _ **Epilogue**_

He was walking slowly along the beach and looked up to see how close he was to home when he saw her. She was sitting in a chair facing the ocean, the sun shining on her face, one arm in a sling.

Steve slowed and watched her, while still moving toward her.

"Hey, Sailor," she said with a smile. "Been waiting for you."

He carefully sat down in the chair next to her and smiled, leaning over to give her a quick kiss. "Hope it hasn't been too long," he told her.

"How was your walk?"

He grimaced, dropping his cane on the sand and reaching up to run his hand along the back of his neck. "Honestly?" He sighed and dropped his hand to reach for her fingers. "It was pretty frustrating," Steve admitted. "I didn't make it two houses away before I had to turn around and come back. And I was _**walking**_ slow as a turtle _ **.**_ "

"You're doing good," she assured him while squeezing his fingers. "Remember you were still in the hospital a week ago. And… I'm gonna go out on a limb here, but I bet the doctor didn't expect you to go for a walk along the beach."

Steve leaned his head back against the chair and smiled, feeling the warmth of the sun on his face. "He said to begin slow walks. And use the cane. That's what I did, right? How about you?" he asked, turning his head to the side.

"I'm fine now… was getting cabin fever. I've just been appreciating this gorgeous view." She turned and looked out toward the sparkling water.

Steve didn't take his eyes off of her. "Me, too," he commented, watching her with a smile on his face. They were silent for a few moments before he spoke once again. "Cath… do we need to talk?"

"About?" she asked, turning to meet his eyes.

Steve sighed again. "Like, do you remember what happened? Does any of…" he waved his hand toward the ocean. "Any of this seem remotely like déjà vu to you?"

Cath thought for a moment and then shrugged. "Kind of, yeah, it does. Does it matter?"

He considered her question and then slowly shook his head. "No, I guess not. But I feel like we've been here before, having this conversation. I mean, recently. I guess that doesn't make any sense because we were both in the hospital."

It was Catherine's turn to sigh and she leaned her head back onto the chair as she pondered his question. Glancing down at the navy blue sling on her arm, she nodded. "It must have been just a dream. At least part of it, anyway." She took a deep breath and then added, "And then it turned into a horrible nightmare. I remember us walking on the beach and feeling so wonderful and peaceful."

"That's what I dreamed, too," Steve told her, a questioning look on his face. "It felt… just right. Everything, I mean this is gonna sound crazy, but everything around us was brighter, more perfect, sort of like I had never seen it before."

"Yeah, that is how it felt," Cath agreed, staring at him. "We had the same dream? How is that possible?" She thought for a moment and then added, "But I didn't like the end of it," she quickly told him.

"Why not?" Steve asked. "All I remember is we were enjoying ourselves on the beach and then suddenly nothing. When I woke up, I was in the ICU and I was in pain and the dream was gone."

Cath was silent for a moment and then replied, "My dream ended with us lying on the beach and suddenly you couldn't breathe and you stared at me and you looked so sad. And then…"

"Then what?"

"Then you died," she said, letting go of his fingers to wipe away a tear.

Steve scooted forward in his chair and used the pad of his thumb to wipe away the water on her face. "But, look, I didn't," he reminded her.

"It seemed so real," Catherine quietly admitted. "And we were sure it was forever, but it wasn't."

Steve used his cane to help stand and then reached a hand down to help her out of the chair. When she stood, he immediately put his arms around her. "One thing I know is that part hasn't changed," he promised.

"Want to know what I know?" she asked him with a grin.

"I'm sure you will tell me regardless."

She poked her elbow lightly into his side. "Don't be smart."

"Oof," he said, and his eyes widened. "That part sounded… and felt familiar, too."

"Yeah, it did," she agreed. "This is kind of weird."

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close as they turned to slowly walk back toward the house. "So what do you know?"

"That wherever this leads, we are together," she replied, glancing up to look at his face.

"Forever," he added. "This time it's forever. No matter what, that will never change."

H50 – H50 – H50


End file.
